Qatari diplomat does not rule out that Gulf crisis may trigger war

On June 5, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt accused Qatar of supporting terrorism and said they were severing diplomatic relations with that country

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MOSCOW, July 25. /TASS/. The crisis around Qatar may trigger a war if no efforts are taken to settle it in line with the principles of international law, Qatari Ambassador to Russia, Fahad bin Mohammed Al-Attiyah, said in an interview with the Ekho Moskvy radio station on Tuesday.

"I don’t think so, but everything is possible," he said when asked if an armed confrontation between the countries involved in the Gulf crisis was possible.

The Qatari diplomat stressed his country insists that the crisis be settled by peaceful means, relying on countries that guarantee peace and that are guided by the United Nations principles. "We see that the boycotting countries have taken ungrounded steps against us. These are unwise and illogical steps that threaten peace in the entire world and can create turmoil unless peace guarantor countries step in to help resolve the conflict and defend the United Nations ideals," he said.

Earlier in the day, Al-Attiyah said Qatar sees Russia’s role in sorting out Doha’s crisis with Arab states could lie in its support for Kuwait’s mediation efforts. "Russia’s support for Kuwait’s mediation is extremely crucial," he said at a news conference, replying to a question on whether Qatar was planning to ask Moscow to mediate in settling the crisis with Arab states.

He also emphasized Russia’s customarily substantial role in the Middle East region.

On Qatar’s quandary

On June 5, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt accused Qatar of supporting terrorism and meddling in their domestic affairs and said they were severing diplomatic relations with that country. Economic sanctions and a transport blockade followed suit.

The Qatari authorities called the Arab partners' moves highly regrettable and totally groundless.

On June 22, four Arab states advanced 13 demands to Qatar for restoring relations and gave it a 10-day deadline to comply with them.

Qatar’s government said that the demands were unacceptable as they had nothing to do with fighting terrorism but was rather aimed at limiting the country’s sovereignty.

On July 5, the deadline expired, but Doha’s response handed via Kuwait was met with regret by the boycotting nations. They vowed to keep up their political and economic pressure on Qatar until it changes its policy.